I wanted to share this story with you because it pulled at my heart strings. Yes I do have a heart. Please understand that unintended acceleration of a vehicle can happen to any car you may be driving. I am not bad mouthing Toyota at all. I just thought you might like this story and it’s happy ending for a man wrongfully convicted. Thanks to USA Today for sharing it.
A Minnesota man imprisoned after an accident involving a ruaway 1996 Toyota Camry — a model recalled for speed control issues, although his was not one of the ones recalled — will go free.
Earlier today, after a judge ordered Koua Fong Lee free pending a new trial, prosecutors said they will not seek to try Lee again. So he’ll be freed.
Since the day of the accident, Lee has said his car sped out of control. Three people died in the 2006 crash.
ABC News said Lee rejected a plea agreement earlier today that would have set him free, but would have kept his conviction in tact and would have kept him from driving for 10 years. He rejected the plea agreement, maintaining he was innocent.
The four-day hearings to determine whether Lee should get a new trial attracted scores of demonstrators, who demanded he be released immediately.
Lee was convicted for a 2006 crash after his Camry sped up an exit ramp off the highway, and hit a Oldsmobile. The driver, Javis Adams, and his 10-year-old son died. Adams’ seven-year-old niece, Devyn Bolton, survived but died a year later from her injuries.
Lee told police at the time that he pressed the brakes repeatedly but the car would not stop.
His attorney, Brent Schafer, took up the case following Toyota’s sudden acceleration recalls this past fall and winter. An expert Schafer hired said the brake filaments in Lee’s car exploded during the accident, indicating the brake lights were on even though the car was accelerating.
– Sharon Silke Carty/Drive On
Well, did it pull at your heart strings too?
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